Lest you think that the only transition we’re dealing with around here is J’s high school graduation and impending departure for college this fall, turning Jim and me into Empty Nesters, I figured I’d tell you about how D just moved into an off-campus house with three roommates–he isn’t coming home this summer because he has an internship–and will graduate this December, one semester early. I can say today that everything on both fronts is going very well, but we’ve had some rocky patches over the past couple of months which prompted me to send an email to D: “I just wanted to email you and apologize for being a…
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Pre-Prom Scare
Yesterday J and I were getting ready to go to our local formalwear shop so he could pick a tux he wanted to rent for prom. He had a coupon that he received from a fellow student and was reading the fine print. “Discount only good on a full rental: tuxedo jacket and pants, shirt, vest, tie, and shoes.” He looked up and asked, “So I have to get a shirt from this place too? I mean, I have white dress shirts.” I answered, “Well, yes. Tuxedo shirts are different from regular dress shirts.” I paused for a moment and continued. “You know, they have a bunch of ruffles down…
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Disney Magical Moments
I went to see “Disney On Ice” with my sister over the weekend. The advantage of attending a show like that without bringing children along–besides the lack of pressure to buy overpriced souvenirs and being among the first people out of the parking lot when it’s over because you don’t have to worry about getting anybody into a carseat–is that it’s the perfect environment for people-watching and taking in the magical moments of total strangers. We saw countless little girls dressed as Disney princesses, all sparkly from head to toe and brimming with excitement over, well, everything. Two sisters, about four and six years old, were leaning on the guardrail…
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It’s Not About The Bike. (Well, Maybe A Little.)
Cycling is on everyone’s minds this week and though I don’t feel the need or desire to use any of my real estate here on Suburban Scrawl to share my opinion about he-who-shall-not-be-named, I have been thinking about bikes and thought I’d tell you about one very special bicycle. When D was about six, we decided it was time to purchase a bike for him. Jim’s main hobby has been cycling for, well, forever, and even though we weren’t about to spend the money to get a top-of-the-line bike for our kid who would outgrow it before the payment was even a memory, we certainly spent some time in the…
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The Olympic Gymnast
My favorite sport in the Summer Olympics is, by far, gymnastics. I was watching in 1984 when Mary Lou Retton got her perfect 10 on the vault. That same year, the dreamy men’s team won gold (I had such a crush on Peter Vidmar!). I watched what is still one of my favorite Olympic moments of all time when it happened live: when Kerri Strug vaulted on an injured foot (when she probably shouldn’t have) and clinched the gold medal for her team, and then Coach Bela Karolyi (love him) carried her to the podium for the medal ceremony. It still makes me cry like a baby. This year, I’m…